Devil with Angel Eyes

Douglas Booth

I lean up against the door frame to Nikkole’s dressing room, watching as she warms up with Colson trying to distract her. A smile appears on my lips as I watch the two of them goof off and have fun. Weeks before, this scene would have brought me jealous feelings wards Colson, but now? Not so much. Maybe because I can see there will never be anything but friendship between them or maybe, I’m learning not to care.

“She looks gorgeous tonight.” A voice besides me says. I turn and see Daniel standing closer to me with Iwan behind him. And by the accent, I know it was Daniel that said the statement.

“She always looks gorgeous.” I state. Which is true. But tonight it’s especially true. From the makeup and hair down to her Janis Joplin meets Motley Crue-esque clothing. The girl never has an off day.

“You’re a little bias, don’t you think?” Iwan chuckles.

“Colson is the biased one.” I remind them. “He did play her dad in the movie after all.”

“Yea but you’ve been in love with her since you laid eyes on her.” Daniel reminds me, with a laugh. “And don’t even try and deny it. The moment she walked into that studio, you were wrapped around her little finger.”

“And she honestly felt the same, or so Michelle tells me.” Iwan adds, making me feel guilty.

“And I blew it.” I sigh.

“You’d have to be blind and stupid not to see that this girl is still madly in love with you.” Daniel rolls his eyes. “You just have to make an effort to show her that you still love her. You did cheat on her after all.”

“Why did you cheat on her?” Iwan asks. “Bel is sweet and pretty but Nik is a goddess in comparison.”

“I was stupid.” I simply reply. “If I could turn back time and prevent that moment I would in a heartbeat.” I look back at Nikkole and Colson as the continue to goof off. “I really didn’t realize what I had until it was gone.”

“Yea, last time I checked, you weren’t a Cinderella song.” A very distinct voice says behind us. Without turning around, I knew Nikki was standing there. I peek over my shoulder and see him standing there with his wife by his side. “When are you going to make it up to Nik? Because she deserves to be happy and you make her happy.”

“I don’t even know where to begin.” I admit. “Care to share some suggestions?”

“Go big or go home.” He smiles, causing his wife to giggle. “After the shit you put Nik through, a grand gesture is going to be your only way to win her back.”

“And if it fails? I’ll make an ass out of myself.”

“It won’t fail, trust me.” With that he leaves as quickly as he arrived.

“So what are you going to do?” Daniel asks.

“I can’t do anything tonight but I’ll think of something.” I say, trying to assure him as well as myself. “If a grand gesture is what it takes then it’s exactly what I’ll do.”

**

Nikkole opens her set with the song Dark in my Imagination, which is apparently slightly about me. Or at least I’m an inspiration to it. Throughout the song she kept having intense eye contact with me, which quickly ended once she rolled into the next song.

“Okay, I think it’s time for me to get to the song that everyone has been waiting for…” Nikkole breathes out before downing half of her water. “This song is about a boy… a boy that meant a lot to me. Here is Goodbye, for Now…

The music starts and I’m being sucked into the song I’ve been dreading to hear tonight. A song I know is about me and Nikkole’s feelings towards me. A song that I never had the balls to listen to completely…

Maybe, maybe, maybe
Maybe, maybe, maybe

Maybe we could meet again as strangers
Start over, get to know each other
Make another first impression
Cause it turns out I don't know you that well
Maybe we could fall in love again
But, maybe this time, we'll end up as friends
But if we keep trying in this moment
I know it'll surely be the end

So I'll say goodbye for now
I don't know for how long
But the time has come
That we don't get along
So goodbye for now

I'm tired of feeling like the bad guy
And you're tired of making me cry
We could try this at another time
But I think that we could both use some space
For a few weeks, months, maybe a year
I could work on myself, you focus on your career
It's kinda scary, the future’s so unclear
But you're not the man I need you to be

So I'll say goodbye for now
I don't know for how long
But the time has come
That we don't get along
So goodbye for now

There's so much to say
But we're so damn different
Fought through the pain
Didn't make a difference
Drives me insane how you're so indifferent
And I don't wanna waste your time

Love's got nothing to do with this
Love's not enough to go through with this
Love alone won't make our problems go away

So I'm sorry but I've gotta say
I gotta say goodbye for now
I don't know for how long
But the time has come
That we don't get along

So goodbye for now
But the time has come
That we don't get along
So goodbye for now
So I'll say goodbye for…”

Her eyes never left mine; no matter where she was on the stage. I don’t know how to feel about this song. I’m happy she’s wanting a second chance, it just pains me that she doesn’t know when she’d want to give me a second chance.

“Is this your first time hearing this song?” A female’s voice asks in my right ear. I turn my head and see Heather Locklear standing right there. “She’s always had a way with words. She gets that from her father.”

“This is the first time I’m hearing it completely.” I answer her question. “Shouldn’t you be ignoring me? I did break your daughter’s heart.”

“Nikkole is a resilient girl, she’ll power through anything.” Heather smiles. “She still loves you, you know? She’s just waiting for you to make up your mind. She must really love you, usually she’d be onto the next victim. But she hasn’t been with anyone since you.”

“Are you trying to make me feel guilty?”

“God no.” She chuckles. “I’m trying to show you that you still have a chance to win her back. She’s always been bad at love; but look at the examples she has had in her life. It’s up to you to show her that true love can exist. Can you do that for me, Douglas?”

Before I can reply, Nikkole ends whatever song she just sung and Danny comes out with an acoustic guitar; this causes the crowd to go wild. “Not sure if this cheering is for me or the very attractive Brit with the guitar.”

“Definitely you babe.” Danny chuckles and I could feel the jealousy brewing up inside.

“Thanks darling.” Nikkole smiles at him before giving the crowd her attention once more. “You guys have been amazing tonight. But all good things come to an end.” The crowd moans and groans, clearly not wanting this concert to end. “But we are going to end this on a mellow but awesome note. Danny here is going to accompany me during this song.”

“This song is going out to our two greatest friends of all time.” Danny adds. “This is The Rain Song by Led Zeppelin.”

I can’t help but smile as I watch their performance. And that smile only got wider when Ben and Kendall got up on stage. And a pain of jealousy and regret wash over me as I watch Ben get down on one knee to propose to the love of his life. And the feeling of regret only grows stronger when I look over at Nikkole. Sure she has a smile on her lips but you can tell it’s being forced. Yes she’s happy that her friends have found their fairy tale ending but she knows she should have found hers by now. As if on autopilot, I find myself walking out of the crowd. I have to make this right with Nikkole. Grand gesture or not; I’ve got to make this right...